The Children of War and Peace
by nefieslab
Summary: SEQUEL TO 'Will the things I have done be remembered' Starts off in the SEED universe. Heero and Duo have come home at long last. The entire crew of the Traverse has gone through one of the mysterious portals and arrived in the AC universe. 18 years after
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: ****Regular disclaimer really. I am only writing this piece of fan fiction to practise my writing skills and to raise the awareness of certain deeds that should never be repeated through another medium. I own none of the rights to anything mentioned in the story following this disclaimer save for my OCs and the mobile suits the Z1 Respite, Z2 Constrict and the Z3 Frustration. **

**Notice:**** This is just a little preview of the sequel story arc, seeing as this is the first chapter of the next arc but as the Prologue. Hope this ties up some loose ends left over from the story's ending.**

Epilogue/ Prologue

Better with time

Heero looked around the barren landscape taking in the vast emptiness of what used to be the buzzing hive of activity in Alaska, Garth Marco's prime research base. The orange sand flew across the plane gently on the wind, forming up in sand drifts all along the side of the collapsed cannon and the buildings that had once stood proud and tall. As he looked at the cannon, now swathed in the sand, he couldn't help but think of the suicidal attack that had brought it down. It had been one of the stupidest attacks Heero had ever seen, with only a slight chance of success to begin with. But, he had to admit, the kid had done what had been expected of him. He paused in his observations for a moment. Had he just referred to Tom as a kid? The guy had been older than him in years, and maybe even in mind a few hours ago. But something had changed inside Heero, an indescribable change that he was still wrestling with deep inside of himself and he was still unsure of the eventual outcome, or its effects.

The sound of a stone rolling along the fine sand of the hill behind him alerted him to Flay's intentions. He didn't even bother to act smug but rather just held up his hand to tell her to stop,

"Quiet Flay. I'm listening for any engine sounds." He said slowly, drawing each word out to make it seem mocking without actually mocking her, "I survived the cannon's destruction and even managed to pry myself free from the pile of rubble we were trapped under. Do you really think that a stone to the back of the head will do it?"

Flay stood, the stone held high above her head in shaking hands, and shuddered at the truth in his words. She was about to put the stone down peacefully but her fingers slipped and suddenly the large stone fell from her grip and onto the crown of Heero's head. A gasp escaped her and she watched as Heero's lifeless body fell to the ground, blood oozing lazily from a jagged line in his skull. Without another thought she turned in a random direction and ran away from the body as fast as her legs would carry her. With the red sand whipping up around her feet she sped down the covered mound of rubble. A faint glimmer of hope ran through her exhausted body as she spotted a large piece of black metal jutting up out of the ground. Without a second thought she hid behind it and gave a shuddering sigh of relief.

There was something else behind the sheltering piece of armour however. Five pieces of the same, black, metal were joined together in the shape of a coffin, with the fifth piece being the lid on top. Strangely coincidental as it looked, the resemblance to a coffin was remarkably uncanny. Suddenly one of the side panels shifted slightly and out of the gap that it made came a pale, human, hand. Flay slowly extended her hand and touched the pale hand's wrist, searching for a pulse. Not only did she find one but one of the hand's fingers brushed against her hand gently. In panicked hasted, she scurried backwards and gathered her breath for an almighty scream. A hand came from behind her and covered her mouth as she tried to let out the compressed air. Heero leaned in closed to her left ear,

"I forgot to mention Flay… don't touch anything." He said to her sternly. She was about to struggle when the hand twitched again. Once again showing that survivors' were being found was still a distinct possibility. Heero wasn't interested in the mystery of the coffin and the pale hand so much as mildly annoyed so her left Flay in her state of shock, and walked over to the side of the coffin. Flay looked at him expectantly. Heero kicked the side panel once and the 'coffin' caved in on itself in a cloud of red sand.

Flay gasped, half expecting a nuclear zombie to rear up and attack Heero. There was, of course, no zombie and hence no rearing-up and no ensuing brain eating. Heero shook his head and pulled aside the top panel from on top of the body. He looked down at the pale face, the sparkling eyes and the clean, white, teeth. And he smiled. Heero held his right hand out for the body and Flay watched, with ever mounting fear, as the body's hand clasped the offered hand and Heero pulled the man to his feet. The man turned to face Flay with his characteristic grin. Flay stumbled backwards,

"B-but… he shot you!" she exclaimed in horror. Duo Maxwell flung his head back, almost hitting Heero in the face with his matted braid,

"That he did. I **am** dead." He said, putting her at ease somewhat before laughing again, almost evilly, "But if you can see me then you are dead too!"

Flay clawed madly at her eyes, as if blinding herself would stop herself from being 'dead',

"No!" she cried with pain and terror. Heero frowned at his friend,

"Stop messing with her head Duo. It's already fucked up beyond all recognition." He said, breaking Duo's illusion. Duo frowned and glanced sideways at Heero,

"Killjoy." He muttered. Flay shook her head desperately,

"D-duo is… a-a-alive?!" she asked, tears tumbling down her face at this casual display that had shattered her perspective of the world around her. Duo rolled his eyes,

"Did you hit her on the head with a stone by any chance?" he asked Heero with a smile. Although it had been made with sarcasm in mind, Heero responded with the truth,

"No, an entire building."

"You don't do things in half measures do you?"

"Nope."

"I hear the engines pf a transport ship Mr Yuy. Gunna get on it or do we need to bring down another building?"

"Nah Duo. I think we're good."

"Well that's good."

"Yes it is."

"Has anyone ever told you that answering everything literally is really annoying?"

"No."

"You would have thought they would have."

"Well they haven't."

"You're doing it again."

"Doing what again?"

"AH! Put me back in the coffin! My own company is better than this!"

"Why's that Duo?"

"Because I'm hilarious!"

"You're delusional with thirst."

"That too!"

The Frontier of Loss

Kira stood in silence, his hands clasped behind his back as the coffin was assembled. It was for the biggest funeral in the history of his home dimension, but it was still going to be the second biggest funeral of both dimensions. But he'd tried to show everyone her importance in the new ear that would immerge from her actions. And, as Lacus would say, it was the thought that counted. His shoulders sagged a bit and a delicate hand came to rest on his right shoulder,

"You did your best Kira and her actions will be known." Meer said, ignoring the irony of talking about her own funeral. The very fact that the coffin being assembled had her name on it sent shivers down her spine whenever she thought about it. And it was hard not to think about it with the shining, inscribed, piece of bronze staring her in the face, glinting mockingly. Kira nodded and put his arm around her waist gently. Meer shivered again. Every time he touched her it set about her skin crawling and her heart aching. She was his Lacus now but she wouldn't love him like she had. In fact the very idea of giving her love to someone, other than Heero, made her want to be violently ill. But she was broken out of her reprieve as the door opened and a distraught looking Cagalli stormed into the room, waving a piece of paper madly in the air,

"What the hell Lacus?!" she demanded, almost screaming at Meer. Meer sighed,

"You got the details of Tom's funeral then?" she asked, only asking the question to be civil. Cagalli, however, was in no mood to be civil,

"You booked it for the same time as the Meer funeral **AND** you've given it the smallest room you could manage!" she shouted at Meer, causing Kira to get slightly annoyed. But Cagalli continued, "He ended the war for us! He sacrificed himself! Don't you care about him?!"

With her angry attitude towards his Lacus, Kira snapped and spun round to face his sister,

"NO!" He bellowed, making Cagalli cower back for a few seconds, "No one cared about Tom when he was alive and no one cares any more now that he's dead Cagalli!"

Cagalli turned defiant again,

"That man that 'no one' cared about did more to help our people with one deed than a bitch who cut herself ever cou-!" she argued but stopped when Kira grabbed hold of her wrist tightly,

"Don't you dare say Meer was worse than that piece of scum human pawn you called a lover!" he warned her viciously. Cagalli slapped Kira across the face with her free hand as hard as she could,

"You bastard Kira! You were there! You saw what he did for me! You saw how much he cared for me! He loved me Kira!" she protested. Kira's cheek stung but he ignored it and shook her violently,

"Wake up Cagalli! He was a traitor and an evil bastard to boot! You were **NOTHING** to him!" he yelled in his sister's face. Cagalli's façade fell apart and tears ran down her face and she finally broke free from his grip and slowly walked backwards towards the door,

"I hate you. I'd rather **die** like Tom, a good person, than have **YOU** as my brother! I never want to see you again Kira! I hate you!" she screamed before running out of the room in a flurry of tears and wailing cries. Kira growled and turned to his Lacus,

"Can you believe that? She thinks I'm the bad guy here!" he said indignantly before returning to watching the casket being assembled. Meer, tears blurring her vision struck out, slapping him round the face just like Cagalli had,

"You are the monster Kira." She said quietly, "You defiled the memory of the man she loved Kira. You can't do that to someone that you love Kira!"

Kira gave a long sigh and rested his head against the wall, his eyes closed as he thought for a moment. He nodded slowly,

"You're right. I'm sorry. I've just…" he stopped for a moment, "Been getting this weird feeling inside me lately. It's… kind of emptiness but the only thing I can fill it with at this moment is anger. I need you to help me with it Lacus."

Meer nodded and the tears descended,

"Of course I will Kira. Come on. I'll show you how to fill it with love." She said softly before leading Kira off by the hand to their bedroom.

Nothing keeps me together, at the seams

Heero Yuy and Duo Maxwell stepped out of the shuttle and onto the main corridor of the Luna base's conference wing in the tattered and charred remains of their flight suits. The ones that's they'd fought, lost and were finally buried in. But the fact that you could see their skin through the tears and cuts just made it look more and more like something that could be turned into a fashion statement. Well, the photographers, interviewers and other forms of media dogs certainly liked the fact that their live feeds to earth and the Plants was full of tall, handsome and well muscled young men. They surged forwards to meet the new arrivals but the thin line of military personal held them at bay. Heero and Duo looked out at the vast sea of reporters and cameramen. Heero shook his head dismissively and Duo only gave them a fleeting grin before pulling on the cord that he held in his right hand. Flay walked out of the shuttle behind the two of them, flanked by two more military personal, her hands bound by the cord that Duo used to lead her around like a leash. Flay spat angrily at Heero's back as the media managed to let loose a collective shout of different questions, only succeeding in making a wall of sound that almost blocked Flay's words,

"You didn't tell me that they'd parade me around in front of the media Heero. You promised me a fair trail and a sentence. Nothing more Heero!" she shouted at him as Duo handed her leash to one of the soldiers. Heero turned to her and bowed his head briefly,

"I know Miss Allster. I didn't expect this welcome anymore than you did. But I am sure that the trail will be private and the judgement just." He said with another curt nod before Flay was slowly led away by the soldiers. She cackled madly and camera lenses clicked shut repeatedly,

"You fool Heero! This is exactly how it always starts! Even Garth started like this! First, the media is used like baying puppies, and then the people who are a threat are eliminated! Then comes the dictator! He'll sweep all of your democracy away Heero! He'll be the end of you all Mr Yuy! Mark my words!" she screamed above the roar of the reporters and the camera men. Duo looked at Heero as Flay disappeared from sight, slightly unnerved by her rant,

"She's… got a point there Heero." He said slowly, "Dictators do start out this way."

Heero shook his head, equally as slow,

"Kira wouldn't be able to. With Lacus and Meer by his side he'll always do what's right. They'll make sure of it." He said soundly, sounding a lot surer than he felt. Duo bit his lower lip,

"Only Meer would really steer him in the right path… I have a feeling that Lacus would let her feelings get in the way." He said, eyeing the armed soldiers nervously. Heero patted him reassuringly on the shoulder,

"But Meer will be there as well Duo. He'll be fine." Heero said with a faint smile. Duo frowned and the two of them were slowly led away by two of the soldiers.

They were escorted around the media area and into a series of long corridors lined with large, marble, archways. Each archway led into its own, large, and luxuriously furnished room. Duo busied himself by looking inside each of the rooms as they walked by them. He was starting to get bored of this activity as well until her noticed Cagalli at the far end of one of the rooms, knelt down on the floor. He stopped and stared, trying to see what it was that she was looking at. Heero looked to his right and didn't see Duo there. With a frown he turned and saw Duo standing in front of the open archway,

"What are you doing Duo?" he asked his friend and stopped walking too. Duo frowned and beckoned for Heero to come closer,

"I think I see Cagalli in this room Heero." He told his friend. Heero shook his head but walked over to the archway as well. He nodded slowly as he too saw Cagalli hunched over something, her shoulders rising and falling with jagged movements,

"She's crying Duo…" he whispered before slowly walking into the room. Duo followed his friend and they made their way over to Cagalli who was indeed crying. Duo placed a hand on her shoulder and she jumped at his touch,

"Hey, hey Cagalli. It's just me… the loveable Duo." He said with a small grin. She looked up at him with blood shot eyes, her cheeks soaking wet,

"Duo…? You and Heero came back for Tom's ceremony?" she asked, her voice weak from wailing and crying. Duo opened his mouth to respond but Heero spoke before he could,

"Yes Cagalli. We won't miss a ceremony dedicated to a friend like Tom. He was the hero of this war, it is the least we could do." He said, staring hard at Duo over Cagalli's head. Duo nodded as he got the message. The truth would hurt more than any lie at this point. Cagalli tried to chuckle but her throat was so sore that it came as a croak,

"Well we three here are the ceremony… and **that** is his thanks." She pointed down at the floor, just in front of her feet. Both Heero and Duo stared down with a heavy feeling in their stomachs when they saw what Tom's thanks had materialised. A single, unremarkable and badly polished bronze plaque. It didn't even have his name on it, only a poor quality engraving of the Frustration. The heavy feeling grew hot inside his gut and Heero clenched his fists,

"How could they allow this? This man gave his life for us!" he bellowed, this being enough to let his emotions rise to the surface. Duo nodded, his own face twisted in rage,

"A man gives his life to end a war and this is thanks he gets?! We need to take this to them guys, for Tom's memory." He concluded grimly. Cagalli nodded and Duo helped her to her feet,

"Come on. I know exactly where to find Kira. And we can make a big scene about it in front of the cameras. Follow me guys."

Ever a Broken man

Kira stood in front of the hundreds of assembled guests and the billions of viewers watching at home on their television screens. He didn't sweat and he wasn't nervous. This was no time to sweat and no time to be nervous. This was a time to mourn a tragic passing, the like of which he never wished to be a part of ever again. He shuffled his speech notes quietly before gripping the edge of the podium and staring through the mass of microphones to address the people,

"My people, this week has been full of news of triumph and the final victory over the oppressive Garth Marco but I want the entire universe to know the cost of our victory! The price of triumph!" he shouted into the microphones. A switch was flicked and the casket slowly raised itself up so that it stood vertical, Meer's face the only visible part of her body. He coughed slightly as several of the guests wept loudly, "One of our own, a figure of enlightened kno-"

Shouts and screams from the rear of the room attracted everyone's attention, including Kira's. One of the double doors to the room suddenly swung inwards and two soldiers flew into the rearmost rows of seats. Kira gritted his teeth and his hand slipped into her jacket pocket and lightly rested upon his revolver. His eyes widened as Duo appeared in the open doorway. Duo shook his head,

"And who's funeral is this?!" one of the soldiers rushed to him but Duo put him down with a savage kick to the gut, "**Who gets a lavish funeral while the hero of our time is marked by a mere plaque?!**"

More of the soldiers came rushing down the gaps in between the rows of seated guests and Heero stepped into the doorway, throwing an unconscious soldier to the floor in disgust,

"You people sicken me!" he roared at the guests and media alike. Kira growled and gripped one of the microphones,

"Heero! Duo! Now is not the time for petty complaints!" he said, his voice amplified beyond the level of their shouts. Duo retorted but Heero wasn't listening anymore. He'd noticed whose face was staring at him from the casket. Without even caring that there were at least a dozen soldiers blocking his path he slowly, in a daze, made his way down the aisle, his hands out to his sides as if thanking some higher power instead of damning it with every fibre of his being. The shouts and threats of the room dulled to him and he suddenly couldn't hear anything anymore. What's more, the colour in his vision disappeared, leaving black and white as something caught in his throat. The soldiers rushed forwards to try and stop him but he saw them as if in slow motion. The first one to come near him got a knee to the gut as Heero gently sidestepped past him. The others tried to grab hold of him but he flitted under and over their grasping hands before breaking into a sprint as he broke free of their ranks. The colours of the world swam back into his vision as he reached the impressive casket. His tears doubled and he never even remembered starting to cry. He pulled at the casket lid and it tore away from the coffin with surprising ease. Meer's body fell out of the velvet lined box and Heero caught her in his arms. His tears splashed down onto her neck and face before he flung his head back and wailed deeply from his lungs. He rocked backwards and forwards on the balls of his feet before he heard the _click!_ Of a revolver being cocked. His head turned of its own accord to look at Kira, his hand visibly shaking as he aimed the handgun at Heero's head,

"Put Meer back in the casket Heero!" he commanded, his voice even shakier than his hand. Heero wailed again,

"There's no one else who can make me feel so alive! I searched the universe and found myself in her eyes!" he shouted, not to Kira in particular but to the universe as a whole. Kira shook his head, his teeth gritted,

"**Put her back in the casket Heero!**" he shouted at his friend. Heero lowered his head into Meer's neck and wept with utter abandonment for five seconds before his sobbing abruptly stopped. He raised his head, his face glistening wet with his tears as his now steely eyes came to rest on Kira,

"Who are you to dare tell me what do?" he asked, his voice low. Kira frowned,

"I am the commander of-"

"You are **NO ONE!**" shouted Heero, shocking the entire room into silence, "You can give yourself whatever titles you want Kira but at the end of the day you are a little boy who got lost one day. You are a pilot Kira, don't forget your place."

Heero rose to his feet, still holding Meer's body in his arms as he did so. He gave Kira a spiteful look before turning to walk away with his lover's body. Kira growled and fired a shot off at Heero's feet,

"Don't you walk away from me Heero Yuy!" he demanded. Heero ignored his warning shot and carried on walking down the aisle towards the door where Duo and Cagalli where waiting. Kira roared violent and emptied the revolver's chamber into Heero's back. The bullets ripped through Heero's flesh, bone and muscle before tearing into Meer's body, tearing it into a bloody mess. Heero dropped the defaced corpse. He slowly turned on his heel and simply pointed at Kira,

"I'll be the end of you Kira Yamato. No matter who you think you are, you will always be just a second rate pilot. Nothing more. And I'll be the one who stands over your lifeless body in victory. You will never be rid of me."

And there it ended. And there it began anew.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: ****Regular disclaimer really. I am only writing this piece of fan fiction to practise my writing skills and to raise the awareness of certain deeds that should never be repeated through another medium. I own none of the rights to anything mentioned in the story following this disclaimer save for my OCs and the mobile suits the Z1 Respite, Z2 Constrict, Z3 Frustration, the AC Oblivion, the VII Sergei, the MkVII Liberate, the Y33 Gehenna, the DMF Gematria, the AA MkXII Vendetta and W0 Gunslinger. **

**Notice:**** Woot! I finally managed to get this sucker up! Sorry for the wait guys but it's been slow progress. **

**For new readers: This is a sequel to my crossover story between Gundam Seed and Gundam Wing. You should go and read it before reading this story. The other story is called 'Will the things I have done be remembered?' and can be found in the Gundam Seed section. Thanks for checking this out.**

The hole in time and space

Duo looked up from the laptop and cast a weary glance at Cagalli. She was slumped against a wall, her own laptop illuminating her dozing features. He shook his head, his own eyes growing heavy once again. With a conscious effort he kept his eyes open long enough to see Heero a bit a way, still busy welding in the dim light. He groaned and closed his eyes to the glowing embers cast from the tool Heero held in front of his body,

"Aren't you getting tired Heero?" he asked his friend, his eyes scrunched tightly shut. Only the sound of the man welding met Duo's ears. One of Duo's eyes opened a crack. Heero was still welding. He frowned and leaned forwards, his eyes now fully opened to the world,

"Heero? Hey Heero! Buddy?!" he called over to his friend. Again, no reply. Not even recognition that Duo had spoken. The teen stood up slowly, putting the laptop to one side as he did so. He gazed down at the other teen for a long time before he noticed the twin wires trailing down from Heero's ears. Duo shook his head and gradually made his way down to his friend's side. Without any indication as to his intentions he pulled Heero's right headphone out of his ear. Quiet, tinny, music drifted up to Duo,

"… I don't know why,

It doesn't even matter how hard I try,

Keep that in mind,

I designed this rhyme,

To explain in due time,

All I know…"

Heero pushed the pause button, stopping the music instantly. He slowly removed his remaining headphone and turned to look up at his friend,

"What is it Duo?" he asked, barely holding back a yawn. Duo chuckled,

"I was gunna ask if you were tired or not but I'd say you've already answered that question." He said with a grin that slowly fell away to a look of concern, "You're tired man; it's time to get some rest."

Heero shook his head lazily,

"No I'm fine." He said before ruining his own argument by yawning loudly. Duo raised a curious eyebrow. Heero nodded slowly, "Maybe just for awhile…"

He turned the gas off and the bright blue flame suddenly died. Another yawn escaped and he stared upwards, into those lifeless yellow eyes. Duo shook his head,

"I still don't know how you got a hold of the parts. Some of them don't even exist in this reality." He commented as he too regarded the dark, almost brooding, Gundam in front of them. Heero smirked,

"You should know as well as I Duo. Only two things remain truly equal across all time and space. One, the infinite resourcefulness of mecha scavengers. Secondly, the equally infinite depths of human stupidity." He commented dryly. Duo chuckled and patted his friend on the back,

"Careful there Heero or I may just have to start calling you Troah." He joked. Heero didn't respond for a long time. He let his held breath leave him as a long sigh,

"Will I be able to be the same person again Duo?" he asked his friend as he continued to stare up into the eyes of the Gundam. Duo didn't need clarification,

"That depends. Will you be able to get over the pain of loss?" he asked, looking to the Deathscythe at the other end of the hanger. Heero nodded without a second thought,

"I think I already have. I don't feel the dull ache inside my very core anymore. But I still feel it when I think of her." He conceded. Duo nodded,

"Will you be able to forgive?" he asked. Heero thought for a few moments before nodding again,

"Yes. I think I could forgive him." He replied. Duo frowned,

"Million Dollar Question time. Will you be able to live with him and his 'position'?" he asked, already hoping that Heero's view would reflect his own. Heero spat on the floor,

"Not for a second." He fumed, his voice tinted with venom. Duo smiled,

"Plan A then?" he asked rather gleefully. Heero shook his head,

"No. Plan C." he replied. Duo frowned,

"Since when do we have a Plan C?" he asked, puzzled. Heero shrugged,

"Since I forgave him I guess. Plan C is that we avoid confrontation and finally get down to getting home." He explained. Duo frowned,

"You'd leave him be?"

"Yes… yes I would. I think that I can finally say that I have-"

"-never hated anyone more than that man!" seethed Kira as he paced the bedroom he shared with his Lacus. As she reclined, on the bed they had made good use of just fifteen minutes ago, she tried to keep her stomach under control while it lurched violently. Just thinking back to the sex they'd just had threatened to cause her to vomit violently. And maybe even follow Lacus' example and… no. She had taken up Lacus' life for a reason. To keep Kira's sanity intact. But with her fighting against retching and suicidal thoughts every time they had sex, she was sure he'd have started to suspect foul play but something had annoyed him so thoroughly that he didn't notice. Someone had gotten so far under his skin that even in the afterglow he cursed his name with an almighty fury. Heero Yuy. The man she had loved, and still did, was why Kira was never at ease. He was the reason that over three hundred operatives, both human and coordinators, were busy searching the known universe. Kira kicked the nightstand and it toppled, startling his Lacus into listening to him again,

"I want him dead for what he did Lacus! Not just dead… no… **I** want to kill him for the way he disgraced me!" he seethed before looking to see her staring at him expectantly. He scoffed slightly, "**And** for what he did to Meer's body. Of course."

His Lacus nodded, thin lipped, as she turned away from him,

"Of course." She said quietly. Kira sighed,

"Don't give me that treatment Lacus. She was my friend too. What…?" he stopped pacing, "Do you think that I didn't care about her?"

His Lacus shook her head,

"Please Kira. Let's not-" she began but stopped when the assorted items on top of her bedside table were flung across the room as one, many of them shattering as they collided with the far wall. A strong hand gripped her chin and turned her so that she faced the infuriated man,

"I gave her the biggest funeral this world has ever seen! I honoured her more than any of our other fallen comrades and you still have the audacity to insult me like that?!" he spat, his eyes slowly developing into twin balls of red light as the cyborg's anger escalated. He pushed her out of the bed roughly and towered over her with a smile that promised bloody violence and cruelty. He chuckled darkly,

"You may contradict me at every turn. You may try and take control over me but there is still one capacity in which you are useful." His tongue darted out, only to run along his teeth, "This will not be over quickly. You will not enjoy this. But this is your life from now on. Now… let's open up those legs…"

The pain ripped through Heero's body as he struggled against the restraints that held him pinned down to the examination table. The pain suddenly stopped increasing and began to fade to a constant ache as the drill was lifted from it's resting place a few millimetres bellow the surface of mid section's skin. Heero's head, the only part of him free to move, slumped back down onto the table as he panted, sweat dripping from his freezing cold body. And although it was almost completely black around him he saw a tall figure standing over him, only visible because the figure seemed to be an even darker shade of black than their surroundings. The ghostly figure slowly waved a hand above Heero's glistening face,

"Nice to see that you're not passing out like last time Heero. A chance for some intelligent conversation perhaps?" asked the figure, his accent one of a posh and well educated man. Heero didn't speak but instead slowly raised one of his fingers. Three guesses which finger. The figure shook its head and let loose a deep chuckle,

"Now **that** is more like it!" it cackled, stilled covered in the veils of shadow. Heero frowned in confusion, which brought on more cackling. The figure loomed over Heero until their faces must have been less than six inches apart, annoying Heero to no end was the fact that the man's face was still only a black mask of darkness. The man smiled and two rows of perfect, white, teeth split the dark face in twain like a white hot gash,

"You wouldn't be my friend if you didn't have that spark inside of you. The spark of defiance, even in the face of death. Only your past actions and that spark keep me respecting you. They are the only reason that I am still proud to call you my f-"

"Heero… wake up Heero…" interrupted a quiet voice. Heero's eyes were open before the man in front of him could finish blinking. He flung himself at the other man blindly, his once hidden knife bearing down onto the man's throat. The room's lights flicked on and Heero saw that his knife was held closely to Duo's throat. Shaking, suddenly very cold, he fell backwards, off of his friend. Duo chuckled a little,

"Now I'm thinking that waiting for your alarm clock to go off wasn't such a bad idea after all…" he said with a large smile. Heero shook wildly as shivers ran through his bones like electrical currents,

"W-why are you smiling?" he asked his friend as he tried to wrap himself up in his blanket. Duo continued to smiled,

"I'm just a bit touched that you kept the knife I gave you for your birthday." He said pleasantly. Heero regained enough composure to grunt,

"I kept it alright. I also kept the other gifts you guys got me. I kept the sword Wufai got me. I kept the pistol that Troah bought for me. I even kept the vest that Quatre made for me." He elaborated on the primal acknowledgement. Duo nodded,

"It's a good vest." He replied, "Must have come in handy."

Heero shook his head,

"Never got a chance to." He explained, "But a vest made from scales of Gundanium is very useful."

Duo grew serious,

"Perhaps you should give it to Cagalli. She will need the extra protection." He said slowly. Heero raised an eyebrow,

"We've been found?" he asked, not really believing in that possibility. Duo shook his head,

"No. A portal has opened nearby." He explained. Heero bit his lower lip,

"Is it-?"

"Identical." Duo answered the unasked question. Heero thought for a second,

"Kira?" he asked quietly. Duo shook his head,

"At least an hour away. But they will be too late to stop us passing through." Duo concluded, looking expectantly at his friend. It suddenly occurred to Heero that Duo would follow his decision even if he didn't believe that it was the right one. And if Duo agreed then Cagalli would agree as well. It was a sobering thought to have, and a powerful thing to realise. He was the one who would make the decisions that would either let them live happily or die horribly. He nodded slowly,

"Steer us home Mr Maxwell."

Duo smirked and gave a sarcastic salute,

"With pleasure sir. With pleasure."


	3. Chapter 3 Restart here

**Disclaimer: ****Regular disclaimer really. I am only writing this piece of fan fiction to practise my writing skills and to raise the awareness of certain deeds that should never be repeated through another medium. I own none of the rights to anything mentioned in the story following this disclaimer save for my OCs and the mobile suits the Z1 Respite (Tom), Z2 Constrict (Tom), Z3 Frustration (Tom), the Gundam Oblivion , the Gundam Liberate and the Gundam Gematria. **

**The variations on the Deathscythe Hell and the Wing Zero are also mine. These variations being the Deathscythe Hellfire and the Wing Zero Mk II.**

**Notice:**** HEY HEY HEY! Nef's back ya'll! And Heero and Duo are back for another AU/Crossover adventure! Let the battles and the unexpected pairings continue!**

Middays in the Stardays

Uncle Duo's Chuckle Bunker

Duo sighed and sat down in the chair that was already standing upright. The dust that billowed up from the simple piece of furniture was testament to the neglect that the small apartment had suffered, just like the rest of the colony. But this apartment was the best place in the entire colony because it was the only one that had its own oxygen field and with the main oxygen generator destroyed the small apartment, identical to millions of others on the colony in design, was the only place that they could go without wearing their space suits. And Duo, for all his love of the deep black void, absolutely hated wearing those suits for any extended period of time. He closed his eyes slowly and focused on his breathing. There was nothing wrong with the air and nothing wrong with the way he was breathing, he just needed to be AWARE that he was breathing freely in a colony that had been opened to the void of space for at least two years by the time they arrived on it four days ago.

During that time they'd managed to sent up a decompression camber just in front of the apartment's door so that the oxygen wasn't sucked out into space every time the door opened. They also tried to check the captain's log on the bridge like they did when they'd first arrived in Kira's reality but it had been completely whipped clean. But the 'sign' was the part that scared him the most. A giant pentagram painted in blood along the main wall of the colony's bridge with the five points highlighted with yellow rings around them. The message underneath the pentagram was a cryptic one to the two pilots who'd finally come back to their homeland. _PENTA-WAR is HIS war!_

Duo had no idea who 'he' was but he'd been raised to be a God fearing man by the priest who's name he'd taken so he believed that the mysterious messenger had been referring to the 'he' who dwelled within the fires deep bellow the depths of the soul. Cagalli had agreed with him but Heero had been more preoccupied with the handwriting than the message its self but Duo wasn't going to argue with the way people dealt with things that couldn't be explained.

Personally he was still a little on edge for other reasons as well. Ever since they'd come through the gateway into the AC universe something had been different. Cagalli seemed a lot more comfortable about the events they'd all witnessed over Alaska and Duo wasn't about to condemn it as a negative change. But Heero had changed as well. The dream he'd woken up from on the other side of the portal kept coming back but the problem was that each time it came back it lasted longer than before, keeping Heero fast asleep as he thrashed and screamed.

And he'd also noticed that he wasn't immune to change either, he started to wake up earlier and earlier in the morning until he started to wake up everyday at five in the morning. But unlike other times when he'd gotten by with less sleep, this shorter period of rest was doing him good. He was more energetic in the mornings and the energy carried him through the day on a buzz that left his mind stunned that he was actually doing some of the things he was doing.

As Duo thought about his extra energy coming from lack of sleep he remembered that Heero, although he lost a lot of sleep to the nightmares, was getting stronger as well. He turned his head at the hiss of the decompression chamber's door and watched as Heero walked into the apartment, taking his suit's helmet off as he did so. Duo grinned up at his friend,

"Why hello! Can I get you something? Dust? Frozen meal? Dust?" he smiled when Heero threw the helmet at him, "How's the defense network looking?"

Heero sighed as he sat down in a chair across from his friend,

"Not good. I managed to get the proximity beacons and alarms working again but that's it. We'd be fighting whoever found their way out here on our own." He frowned and looked down at the coffee table, apparently deep in thought. Duo scratched the back of his head and yawned,

"So… what you puzzling in that big old brain of yours now?" he asked casually. Heero arched an eyebrow but didn't look up,

"Since when do you want to know what I'm thinking about?" he replied, equally as casual. Duo shuffled nervously in his seat,

"Since it occurred to me that we might be with each other for a long time." He thought back to the incident in Alaska and looked at his own hand, turning it over and examining it as if it were something alien to him. Heero looked up,

"We're not immortal Duo." He replied. Duo met his friend's gaze, and for the first time, wasn't even slightly intimidated,

"But are we mortal anymore?" he asked. The staring contest kept up awhile longer before Heero sighed,

"I was thinking about the symbol we found." He said slowly, changing the subject. Duo nodded,

"I was too actually." He conceded. They stared at each other in total silence for awhile before Heero frowned,

"The writing is familiar to me; I just can't remember where I've seen it before." He mused aloud. Duo frowned,

"Maybe you're just imagining it?" he suggested. Heero cocked an eyebrow,

"You think I'm losing my touch?" he asked coldly. Duo immediately jumped back and waved his hands in front of him,

"Of course not Heero!" he said quickly. Heero continued to glare at Duo for a bit longer before he couldn't hold back the laugh anymore. The laugh scared Duo even more before he put two and two together, "You… was that an attempt at humor?!"

"More like a success." A voice giggled from the doorway that led into the bedroom of the apartment. Duo and Heero looked up to see a laughing Cagalli. Upon seeing Cagalli giggling, a sight rarely ever seen, Heero began to laugh a little again. Duo recoiled from both the sound of Cagalli giggling and Heero laughing, both of them alien to him. He curled up into a ball on the sofa,

"Nothing is the same… everything's changing… and I'm not the funny one anymore!"

Kitty in the woods

Dominic Freedom looked down at Meer in disgust. Not for the woman herself, he admired the woman for taking Kira's beatings when she was pretending to be Lacus for his benefit, but because of the state his other half had left her in. Her clothes were ripped, tattered and filthy. The pink lace was now dulled with accumulated dirt and grime. Her hair was unwashed and in a state of disarray. And then there was the 'parting gift' that Kira had left on her face.

Ripping his shirt's sleeve at the cuff he used the small piece of white linen to wipe Meer's face clean of Kira's seed. He frowned and looked down Meer's body. He tore off the other cuff and started to wipe down her thighs. There seemed to be no end to the things that Kira was going to put her through. Dominic reached down and stroked Meer's cheek gently. In her state of deep slumber she reacted warmly and rubbed the side of her face up against his fingers. He was about to take his fingers away, sickened by the idea that he was taking advantage of her in some way, when her mouth parted,

"Heero…" she whispered in her sleep and rubbed against his hand again. He smiled faintly and cupped her cheek gently with his hand, if she wanted to think he was her Heero then he wasn't going to stop her. She deserved to be happy sometime, even if it was just in her dreams. With a small sigh he removed his hand from her cheek, taking note of how Meer sighed at the loss of contact, and he scooped her unconscious form up into his arms.

It was the movement of being picked up that jerked Meer back into the realm of the living. She couldn't clearly see anything because of the sleep in her eyes but she felt the comforting arms carrying her and a blurry male face above her. She remembered the gentle hand on her cheek and sighed contently, burrowing her face into the man's breast to take in his scent. As she sniffed she became aware that the scent was different to the one she'd been expecting,

"Mmm… Heero… you smell different. Are you using that new body wash Tom got you?" she asked, completely confident that the male was still Heero.

"I've started using a new brand. It's called, 'Lion King'. Thanks for noticing." Came the sarcastic, and yet warm, reply. But the voice wasn't Heero's. She blinked rapidly to get rid of her misty eyes,

"You're not Heero…" she muttered before her vision cleared and she found herself staring at the face of one Kira Yamato. The breath caught in her throat. Kira had heard her talking about Heero… he'd figure out that she was actually Meer. Kira's face moved slowly into a warm smile, an action she'd not seen it do in many days,

"Don't worry Meer. I won't tell Kira." Dominic said with the warm smile still firmly in place. Meer twitched in his arms,

"Dominic?" she asked uncertainly. Dominic nodded,

"Yeah. Kira and I still have to share this body." He looked down at the bruises across Meer's half exposed body, "Although I haven't had much say in what we do as of late. He locks me out until our body is too tired to do much."

Meer thought back to when they'd first set off in the battleship_ Kari_. When Kira had beaten her in the kitchens after an unsatisfactory meal she'd been ordered to sleep in the cold kitchen as further punishment. When she's woken up in the morning she'd found herself wrapped up in a warm blanket that hadn't been in the kitchen the night before. When she thanked Kira for the blanket as she made him breakfast he'd pleaded ignorance. It made sense now. Dominic had given her the blanket.

Dominic smiled down at her, full of sorrow,

"I'm sorry if the blanket I gave you was itchy. I tried to find one that Kira wouldn't miss." He explained, startling Meer by choosing the same memory as her. Dominic sighed, "I'm so sorry for what he's putting you through Meer…"

Meer frowned and wriggled in his arms,

"You can make it up to me by putting me down." She commented dryly. Dominic frowned and set her down on her own two feet,

"I'm sorry if you thought it was inappropriate." He muttered shyly. Meer glared up at him as they continued to walk,

"Well you are a murdering psychopath." She reasoned. Dominic nodded slowly,

"Yeah… still doesn't mean I don't feel bad about what's happening." He looked down at her as they walked, "I do have a conscience."

Meer scoffed and crossed her arms across her chest, cringing as she aggravated the bruises on her breasts,

"I'm sure Shinn would feel better knowing that." She said flatly. Dominic stopped walking and Meer stopped as well, if only to continue to glare at him,

"I'm not the bad guy here Meer. You may think that Kira's 'just not himself right now' but you're not the one spending day and night with the guy constantly in you head!" he growled, more at himself than Meer, "He's changed Meer! He thinks that he's justified! He thinks that hitting you in a perfectly acceptable thing to do!"

Meer watched as Dominic got all worked up about Kira's treatment of her. She frowned gently,

"Then why do you let him continue like this?" she questioned coldly. Dominic went to look her in the eyes but found that he was unable to, unable to look into them and see the real reason,

"Because he's in control." He replied bitterly. Meer frowned even more,

"That never stopped you before. What's the real reas-?"

"It's because I'm weak alright?!" he spat, rather more savage than he'd intended. Meer recoiled and he tried to calm down, "He lets me out… in exchange for free reign at times."

Meer looked at Dominic with a mixture of shock and disgust,

"You're pathetic." She scolded, "You say you feel sorry for me. You say you don't want him to do these things to me. And yet you do nothing to stop him!"

Dominic closed his eyes,

"I can't Meer! If I do then he could lock me away forever!" he shook his head, "I was always a part of Kira's mind but back then I wasn't even a voice in his head. I was a 'nagging feeling'. I barely existed! I can't go back to that! Do you know what its like to be imprisoned like that?! Not able to do anything but being totally aware of everything?"

Meer shook her head again,

"Yes. And there are only two ways for me to escape my imprisonment." She shot him a stare that seemed to force his own eyes to lock onto hers, "One, you stop Kira. Two… I wait until Heero comes to kill Kira."

Dominic looked away, at the floor this time,

"I'm sorry Meer. You'd best start wishing for Heero because I'll do anything if it means not going back to that."

Torn Apart

Cagalli sighed quietly but inside her suit's helmet the sound echoed and ended up sounding a lot louder than it had been to begin with. She looked at the small display in the helmet and saw that her suit's com-link wasn't getting a signal. On one hand it was good, because now Duo wouldn't berate her for sighing too loud in his ear, but on the other it was bad, mainly because she'd have to wait until she got signal again before speaking to Duo and Heero again.

A shiver shot up her spine and she felt the sudden urge to run away from this darkened corridor on the abandoned level three of the colony. Fighting the urge she reached down and slowly drew her pistol from the holster on her leg. She turned slowly on the spot, checking each of the numerous shadows and dark corners. Nothing.

She relaxed slightly, her shoulders sagging a bit. She's half expected someone to have been sneaking up on her, she half wanted them to. It was just so damn boring exploring this old colony just for the sake of it. As if Heero and Duo expected there was an atrocity that was just waiting to be uncovered, and then avenged. Well, even if some part of her mind wanted otherwise, her mind was relieved that there wasn't anyone there. As she went to holster her weapon again something moved behind her and she suddenly found a pair of arms wrapped around her from behind, effectively holding her arms to her chest.

Cagalli began to panic and began to thrash wildly to escape from the person's restricting grip. There body pressed against the back of her's and she heard the man chuckle, a sound that was hauntingly familiar to her. As she thought about it she noticed that the arms, although restricting, were not forceful. She frowned and the chuckle came again,

"Something the matter 'Galli?" the man asked sweetly, the sound seemingly coming from just past her left ear, despite her suit's helmet. Cagalli froze. Only one person had ever called her Galli. She swallowed hard, trying to force the lump in her throat to disappear. She opened her mouth slowly, her lips dry and cracked,

"T-Tom?" she half whispered. The man's body pressed into her back a little more forcefully,

"That's my name." he said, a smile evidently on his face just from his tone of voice. Cagalli felt her heart fluttered inside her chest and Tom's hands began to rub her suit-covered arms comfortingly. She shook her head,

"B-But you're dead!" she cried, closing her eyes as her heart tried to fight against the logic in her own words. Tom loosened his grip on her,

"You're right." He said bluntly. Cagalli froze and opened her eyes, stilling facing away from Tom. Her mind raced to find the answer to this meeting but the only one that made sense was also one of the most implausible,

"B-But… then how are we talking?" she asked tentatively. Tom held her tightly again,

"It's not the reason you're thinking of. You're still very much alive." He explained with a slight chuckle. Cagalli frowned,

"Then how is this happening?" she asked him, willing her first idea to be true. Tom sighed a little,

"It's not that reason either Cagalli. I'm still dead." He told her sadly. Cagalli felt her heart sink. She swallowed hard,

"Then how is this possible?" she demanded. Tom chuckled again and leaned in from behind to place a gentle kiss on the back of Cagalli's neck. As Cagalli melted into the small kiss a thought suddenly occurred to her, "How…? I'm in a space suit…"

Tom smiled,

"It's a dream Cagalli. Logic isn't required." He explained, finally moving into her field of vision again. Cagalli finally started to accept that it had to be a dream. Tom was dressed in his old commander's uniform but it was different from the one she'd last seen him in. It was a lot cleaner and seemed to be flawless at the seams, the obvious sign of new clothes. But what was odd was that he had a small, red, scarf wrapped tightly around his neck. Realization came to her slowly,

"This is… this is a dream about-"

"About the first time we made love." Tom finished with a tender smile as he slowly placed himself atop his lover, "Not animalistic fucking in the brig. This was the first time we made love."

Cagalli went red,

"This is going to be a good dream…"

"Wet dreams usually are my dear."

Down the rabbit hole

Kira Yamato reclined in the captain's chair and yawned loudly. He slowly reached up and grabbed hold of what appeared to be the end of a piece of rope. Giving the rope a sharp tug he returned his gaze to the empty bridge. After a few seconds of complete silence he pulled on the rope again, with much more savagery than the last time. A straggled sound came from behind his high backed chair. He sighed impatiently,

"I tugged on the lead. My bitch should obey the summons and get her ass over here, to my feet." He recommended with a cruel smile. The lead jerked slightly and, very slowly, a red haired woman started to crawl towards the captain's chair on all fours. Kira watched, the sadistic grin still in place, as Flay crawled over to his feet like the dog he'd reduced her to. She stopped at his feet, face turned away and arms trying to cover he naked body. Kira frowned,

"Are you a loyal dog?" he asked simply. Flay twitched as if physically hit and slowly turned to look up into Kira's eyes. After a few moments searching she still couldn't find it, the compassion that had made Kira the person he was. Flay whimpered and lowered her head hesitantly. Kira watched with an amused expression as her tongue gently started to lap at his bare foot. He sighed contentedly as looked around the large bridge of the _Kari_. It was the biggest ship in his fleet, a battleship that was half the size of the moon and faster than the lightest mobile suits. But the beauty of the _Kari_ was that it was totally automated, all of the computer systems within the ship operated on a system akin to the mobile doll system.

_Not to mention the two battalions of Virgo suits it's carrying_, Kira thought to himself with a satisfied smirk. He knew from experience that the mobile doll operated Virgos were a match for almost any regular mobile suit. His smirk widened into a grin, _And for any Gundams… well the battalion of Z2s will do the trick._

The door to the bridge opened and footsteps slowly came closer to his chair. They stopped a few feet behind the chair itself. Kira's grin grew. Only one person in the crew of two was that obedient to him,

"Lacus. How nice of you to join us." He announced, taking note of how His Lacus took a sharp intake of breath. Most likely she'd flinched at the sound of his voice. He waited patiently. His Lacus didn't disappoint,

"It is a pleasure to be in your presence." She recited, as he'd taught her. He raised an eyebrow and coughed a little. She took a deep breath before adding, "Master."

Kira laughed harshly,

"And don't you forget it just because we'll be in a different universe by tomorrow." He warned her playfully. His Lacus breathed in sharply again. Kira grinned again. _Good, she got the hint._

Phenomena

Jason swore loudly as he fell from the rooftop and onto the top of the dumpster with a loud smash. He rolled off the metal bin and turned to see the large indent he'd made in its lid. Rolling his head around his neck he swore as the bones clicked. He wasn't sure that he'd taken less damage than the bin in this case. Ignoring the various alarm claxons sounding all around him Jason began to stretch his back out, working out the kinks from his fall. His ear piece crackled to life to interrupt him,

"Jason you've stopped moving. Is everything alright?" asked a concerned female voice. Jason laughed,

"Stop worrying about me Elle!" he scolded her lightly. The sound of buckling metal caught his attention and he spun round on the spot, falling to his knees as he brought his pistol up into position for a kill shot. He stopped when another teenage boy jumped off the bent dumpster, whipping his long hair from his face as he walked,

"Come on Jason. The mission isn't complete yet." The teen said coldly. Jason rolled his eyes,

"Come on Heero! The mission practically done!" he said confidently. Heero closed the distance between the two of them in a flash, his hands gripping the collar of Jason's uniform,

"It's that exact type of thinking that killed our fathers Jason!" he roared, breaking his usually calm demeanor to show his anger. Jason frowned,

"But we're not them Heero. You're not your father and I'm not mine." He reasoned. Heero growled and let go of Jason,

"Yes we are." He commented bitterly. Jason frowned again,

"This again Heero?" he shook his head, "Get over it. Who cares how we came into this world?!"

He smiled and Heero slowly smiled back,

"Its how we go out of it that counts." They said as one. Over the ear pieces they heard Elle sigh,

"God guys… you'd think you'd be a little bit more cautious when you're in the middle of a mission." She reasoned. Jason chuckled and Heero frowned,

"A momentary lapse Elle." He assured her. Elle snorted,

"You're my brother Heero. I can tell when you're lying." She commented dryly. Heero raised an eyebrow and Jason grinned,

"Well we'll just have to get back to the mission then won't we?" he said, winking at Jason as he did. Jason barely held in a laugh. Elle groaned,

"God damn it you two! Get on with the mission." She ordered before the line went dead. Jason shook his head,

"I don't get you two Heero. You're the one who wanted to finish the mission and yet you argued with Elle when she suggested it." He commented as the two teens slowly made their way along the side of a hanger, stopping occasionally to hide in the shadows. Heero smiled a little,

"She's my sister Jason. It's like a get an unstoppable urge to just tease her every now and again." He explained to his friend as another group of guards rushed past their hiding space. Jason frowned,

"I never get them with my sister." He responded quietly. Heero chuckled a bit,

"But that's because the only time you talk to your sister is when you're both in your mobile suits, blasting at each other while we try to escape." He countered. Jason nodded slowly,

"I guess." He said quietly before joining Heero in looking at the crowded square. Across the square there was a part of the perimeter fence, the part when a convenient hole had been cut out. Guards patrolled the square like dogs attached to stakes driven into the ground. Jason looked to Heero with a smile,

"Rock-Paper-Scissors for the job of distraction." He offered. Heero rolled his eyes but held out a hand.

"One… two… three… show."

One rock and one scissors.

"Damn it Heero! Best two out of three!"

"… fine."

"One… two… three… show."

One rock and one scissors.

"Gah! How'd you know I'd go for the same strategy twice in a row?"

"Because it's the same way you always play rock-paper-scissors."

"… I hate you."

"Whatever. You remember the rules if you're caught right?"

"You mean apart from being penciled in for execution?"

"Yes, apart from that Jason."

"No pick up, no rescues, no contact and no dropping the soap in the shower."

"Did you remember to pack your cyanide pill?"

"…"

"You didn't?"

"… maybe…"

"… you're an idiot."

"Just a bit."

"Well enjoy being publicly executed rather than a quick death."

"Roger dodge!"

"… I'm Heero."

"Its just an expression Heero…"


	4. Chapter 4 Part one of two

**Disclaimer: ****Regular disclaimer really. I am only writing this piece of fan fiction to practise my writing skills and to raise the awareness of certain deeds that should never be repeated through another medium. I own none of the rights to anything mentioned in the story following this disclaimer save for my OCs and the mobile suits the Z1 Respite (Tom), Z2 Constrict (Tom), Z3 Frustration (Tom), the Gundam Oblivion , the Gundam Liberate and the Gundam Gematria. **

**The variations on the Deathscythe Hell and the Wing Zero are also mine. These variations being the Deathscythe Hellfire and the Wing Zero Mk II.**

**Notice:**** Some new twists coming at you from now on guys. Thanks for your continued support.**

Operation: Angelic Sword

Eighteen Years is a long time

Heero awoke with a jolt, his body caked in rapidly cooling sweat and his eyes open wide. The dreams were getting worse. They were still vague, dark and tainted with torture but they were getting more frequent. He'd have them two to five times a night, but he was also starting to see the white gash grin in the shadows whenever he tried to relax a little.

With a sigh he raised a hand to his soaked brow and kept it there, his wrist blocking his eyes. He began his breathing exercises, just as Dr J had taught him to when he was still in training. As he breathed his mind flitted back to the countless mock battles, the endless simulations, dry runs and wet work. He shook his head; it was only because of his training that he was still alive.

And it was working to help again.

Heero's ears twitched at the soft _hiss_ of the decompression chamber being bled before the door was opened, a technique to make sure that the door opening itself would be quiet. Reaching under his pillow he slowly drew his pistol from the hidden holster. His eyes, now adjusted to the dimly lit bedroom, scanned the two other beds.

Two sleeping lumps under covers.

Heero slowly pulled the hammer back, cocking his pistol as quietly as he could. His ears twitched again and he noticed that Duo was slowly getting out of bed, his own pistol aimed at the closed door. Without looking in Heero's direction he made a hand signal with his free hand.

_Cover me_

Heero nodded and slid from out under his covers, making almost no sound as he lay flat on his front on the floor. Duo made another hand signal.

_High?_

Heero tapped the side of his pistol twice.

_No._

Duo moved his hand again.

_Low?_

Heero smiled and tapped the side of his pistol once.

_Yes._

Duo gave the thumbs up before slowly sinking down onto one knee on the floor. Once in position Duo stopped moving completely, seemingly not even needing to breathe anymore. Heero did the same and strained his ears. Both Duo and Heero nodded slightly when the _hiss _came to an abrupt stop. Heero tightened his grip on the pistol as several muffled footsteps neared the bedroom door.

The footsteps stopped suddenly.

Duo held his free hand up.

_Hold fire._

Heero frowned. Both he and Duo slept with .50 calibre handguns under their pillows at night. With a clip of ten rounds each they could blast their attackers through the wall and door. Then he saw Duo gesturing towards their beds, a glinting knife in hand. Heero tapped his gun.

_Sneak?_

Duo touched the blade to the floor once.

_You bet your ass._

Heero rolled his eyes as he realised that Duo had used the blade signal for _yes_, but he had heard what Duo would have said instead. He was spending too much time with his friend; he was picking up his bad habits as well as how he thought in battle.

Together, without prior planning, they rolled. Duo rolled quietly to the right and passed the edge of his bed before crawling into a firing position. Heero rolled silently to the left to take up his own hidden firing position. He closed his eyes briefly before flicking the safety off on his pistol. In the background he thought he heard Duo mutter to himself but he knew that he was just expecting to be able to hear his friend's pre-battle prayers, just because he knew they'd be muttered.

The door suddenly erupted into millions of deadly splinters, pistol rounds smashing through with enough force to make the thick wood fly. A dozen splinters, and one of the rounds, stuck fast in the floorboards by Heero's hidden face. A wicked grin spread across his face. Dart rounds. They wanted them alive while he and Duo didn't care for the health of their attackers.

The door buckled as a black boot launched the lock into the room with enough power to have the lock smack into the opposite wall. Swinging open, the door slammed into the wall as several large men tried to rush through. It would have been comical if not for their white body armour and modified SMGs.

The first three to make it into the bedroom split up, each moving towards one of the three beds. Cagalli went to sit up in her bed and the man marking her shot a short burst from his SMG. She fell straight back down, rather heavily. Heero watched Cagalli fall and made himself a promise. If she started bleeding then he'd gut the men right there.

She didn't bleed.

A couple more men walked into the room, all of their attention focused on Heero's bed and Duo's bed, as yet unaware that they were empty. One of them, a man who wore a white uniform with gold trim, stepped forwards,

"Heero Yuy of the L1 colony cluster and Duo Maxwell of the L4 colony cluster. You are hereby under arrest." He told the empty beds. Duo coughed and Heero smiled a little,

"And by who's authority is this arrest cleared?" he asked, throwing his voice so that it sounded as if he were on the bed. The leader smiled,

"By the authority of The Preventers and of the Sanc Kingdom." He answered, obviously expecting the question. Heero frowned,

"And what laws did we break?" he asked, throwing his voice as Duo had. The officer chuckled,

"To be honest I couldn't tell ya. You've had an arrest of sight order on you for fifteen years. Three years after you disappeared actually. Hell, I was still in uni when the order was given." The man chuckled again. Heero frowned even more,

"And what about our companions?" he asked, casting a glance at Cagalli's slumped form. The officer shifted uneasily,

"She'll face the same punishment as you two I'm afraid." He answered hesitantly. Duo coughed again,

"And the punishment is…?" he smiled a little, "Ten days community service?"

The officer laughed a little,

"Afraid not. Arrest, interrogation and a very public execution."

"And if we opt to let you all live? Will you let Cagalli go?"

"You're outnumbered."

"Do you really think that'll help you?"

"Yes actually."

"Got something to say to that Heero?"

"… Yes. I'll come quietly if I get to speak to with the leaders of the Sanc Kingdom and The Preventers."

"You're not in a position to negotiate."

Four of the five men fell to the ground, fist sized holes in their chests, as the thunderous sound of Heero's gun rang out. The officer whimpered and Heero rolled out from under his bed,

"I think you'll find my demands reasonable Colonel."

The Sword

Heero Yuy frowned at his sister as he ducked under another perfectly thrown plate. The plate shattered against the wall, falling onto Heero's head in a small shower. He slowly tried to rise,

"Calm down Elle." He suggested casually. Another plate exploded a few inches from his head. He raised a finger and shook it at her, "Now that was just uncalled for."

Elle growled and shook her head quickly. Heero smiled a little at his short, blonde, sister acting almost exactly like a lion. She looked up at him, her eyes puffy and red from crying, and his smile fade,

"But why can't we go get him?" she asked, breaking down into a little sob. Heero rubbed the bridge of his nose,

"Because we're an underground unit. A breakout is too likely to expose us." He replied, just as he had done earlier. Elle sniffed,

"But why tonight Heero?" she asked, getting even more distressed. Heero frowned,

"Because the mission was toni-"he began,

"But we'd been planning this dinner for months Heero! One night when we'd be able to act like we did before the war!" she started to cry again and Heero felt anger break through his sympathy,

"You wanted one more nigh like before the war? What were we going to do? Watch the news blindfolded and with earplugs in?! Go back to being the ignorant little rich kids?!" he shook his head, his outburst provoking more tears and sobs from his sister,

"That's not what I meant Hee." She said meekly. Heero smiled a little,

"'Hee'? You haven't called me that since before the war." He noticed pleasantly. Elle smiled a little more,

"See? Not everything about us from before the war was bad…" she said quietly. Heero sighed a little and slowly walked over to his sister. She began to cry again as he wrapped his arms around her,

"Don't worry Elle. Jason's a big boy. He'll be fine." He tried to tell her. Elle shook her head,

"But they'll be getting ready to publicly execute him even as we speak." She muttered above her own sobbing. Heero frowned and let his sister go to walk over to the television. He quickly flicked it onto the news channel. As the reporters jabbered on he felt his mouth fall open. Elle, probably noticing her brother's silence, turned to see him standing there in a state of shock. She nudged him,

"What's wrong Hee?" she asked him. Heero simply pointed to the screen as he swallowed hard,

"Look at who those guards are escorting." He told her and they both watched as an unresisting Heero Yuy was dragged along by two Preventer guards. Elle frowned,

"But… that's you!" she protested. Heero shook his head, a shiver running down his spine,

"No Elle… that's him." He told her, his voice losing its power and becoming a whisper. Elle frowned even more,

"Who? Who is he?" she asked her brother, starting to get a bit scared. Heero found that his throat was dry and tears began to form in his eyes,

"He's come home at last Elle…" he told her dreamily. Elle shook her head,

"You're starting to scare me Hee… who is that man?" she asked him once again. Heero paid his sister no mind as he slowly walked up to the screen. He reached out and slowly touched the face of the prisoner,

"It's him Elle… it's our dad…"

The Angels

Heero rolled his head around, working the kinks out of his neck. The man standing in front of the chair he was strapped to shook his head as his nose broke itself again before reconnecting itself in the correct position, leaving only Heero's bloodied face as evidence that anything had happened. The Preventer shook his head,

"Now that's just freaky." He commented. Heero moved his nose a little,

"You're telling me. Worse when it does it on your face." He told his interrogator as he shifted in his chair to get slightly more comfortable. The Preventer watched silently before cocking an eyebrow,

"Finished? Is that better now?" he asked sarcastically. Heero nodded,

"Quite."

"I was being sarcastic."

"I know."

"But you don't answer a sarcastic question."

"Well why not?"

The Preventer frowned,

"That other kid was right, you're a pain in the ass to interrogate." He told Heero with a smile. Heero smiled a little,

"I hope you hit him for a remark like that." He replied. The air rushed out of Heero's body as his interrogator's fist collided with his rib cage. Heero coughed and blood flew from his damaged insides. The Preventer nodded,

"Course I did Mr Yuy." He told him pleasantly. Heero coughed a little bit more blood up,

"Thank you Serge." He managed to splutter out. The Preventer, Serge, nodded,

"My pleasure Mr Yuy. Anything for the hero of Libra." He told him before beginning to circle Heero. Heero frowned,

"I've been gone for how long Serge?" he asked politely. Serge smiled,

"Eighteen years, two months and five days Mr Yuy." He replied. Heero nodded,

"And yet I'm still respected as a hero for Libra?" he asked, a bit confused. Serge nodded,

"When you first disappeared, Miss Reliena started a foundation dedicated to bringing you and Mr Maxwell back." He told his captive audience, "One of her campaigns for funds was spearheaded by a simulation of what would've happened if Libra had hit the Earth. Saving 50 million lives does tend to elevate you to the status of hero."

Heero raised an eyebrow,

"50 million huh?" he whistled, "Well I was just doing my mission Serge."

Serge nodded,

"I know Mr Yuy." He said with a smile, "But I would've been one of those 50 million. I owe you my life."

Heero smiled a little,

"Consider your blood debt repaid Serge." He told his interrogator. Serge suddenly stood rigid and saluted as the door behind Heero's chair opened. Three sets of footsteps made their way to the back of the chair. One of the people behind Heero spoke,

"Thank you very much Captain Mason. You're services, and your presence, are no longer required here. Return to you duties." The aristocratic voice informed. As Serge rushed from the room Heero set his face,

"Why don't you step out to where I can see you Milliardo?" Heero asked. Milliardo Peacecraft walked into the light in front of Heero.

His face was shallower and at parts the lines of age touched him. His long, blonde, hair was still the same but he'd changed uniforms. Instead of the practical uniform Heero had seen him wear so long ago he now wore a perfectly white uniform, decorated with gold and silver medals and embroidery. Heero noticed the silver sceptre in Milliardo's left hand,

"So that's it? You're the king of the Sanc Kingdom now?" Heero asked, still trying to control his emotions. Milliardo frowned,

"I'm thirty seven Heero. I have lived another full eighteen years since you and Duo disappeared. So has the world you left." He said slowly. Heero glared at his old enemy,

"You make it sound as if it was our own choice to enter that portal." He noticed bitterly. Milliardo shook his head,

"Don't interrupt me again Heero." He warned coldly before continuing, "This changed world needed some stability so Reliena formed The Preventers from the remaining Gundam pilots. It was their duty to prevent war at all costs. Wasn't that so?"

Heero watched as two more familiar faces walked out from behind him. He swallowed a little,

"So you two are the leaders of The Preventers." He summarised as he looked at Trowa and Wufei, both of them now into their thirties. Wufei was the most youthful out of the three, his hair still black and his frame still muscular. Trowa had changed an awful lot though. His brown hair had grey hairs scattered throughout and he looked tired in a way that suggested that more than sleep was needed. Heero shook his head and watched as Trowa turned his head away while Wufei smirked,

"The great Heero Yuy… captured!" he laughed a little. Milliardo waved a hand and Wufei was silent,

"He wanted to be captured Wufei." He informed the slightly younger man before turning back to Heero, "So why don't you just give us the knife Heero?"

Both Trowa and Wufei looked shocked when Heero dropped a curved knife to the floor. Milliardo nodded,

"Good. Now we can talk civilly." He said with a small smile. Heero continued to glare,

"Why am I here? What crime have I committed?" he asked. Milliardo shook his head and Wufei answered instead,

"Your crime was falling through that portal Heero." He told his old friend with a smirk, "Going through that type of portal enhances certain aspects of a person. It gives them the powers that only the Gods should have!"

Wufei kicked out without warning, his foot colliding with such force that Heero was sure that he'd broken at least one rib. The chair tipped from the kick and fell onto its side, dragging Heero along with it. Milliardo held Wufei back with one hand,

"You see Heero… as a person we have nothing against you. You are a hero." His eyes glinted, "But you have been given powers by that portal that should not be given to mortals. You're just like Him."

Heero coughed a little and Trowa righted the chair before looking away again. Heero frowned,

"I've been away for eighteen years. I have no idea who you're taking about." He told them. Wufei growled,

"We're talking about that piece of shit coordinator that got thrown out of the portal just as you and Duo left!" he roared before Milliardo, once again, held him back. Trowa spoke for the first time,

"His name was Athrun Zala and the portal changed him as it has you." He explained sadly, "It chose to increase his intelligence in all areas of human knowledge. In simple terms he became a sort of super genius."

Heero frowned,

"I know of Athrun Zala from my time in his universe. He was a good man by all accounts." He replied. Trowa smiled a little, a ghost of a smile,

"He was at first. He put his intelligence to good use. He cured many diseases." Trowa's eyes narrowed, "He created life. From samples of your blood he impregnated Reliena with a fertilised egg. Basically he made a child that had your DNA and Reliena's DNA. Just like in traditional fertilisation. He did the same to Hilde with some of Duo's blood. Both women wanted the children and it was widely accepted as a modern day miracle, brought about by Zala."

Heero shook his head,

"So he made a few children… does that make him you enemy?" he asked his old friends. Wufei growled again,

"He altered the children while they were in the womb Heero! By using the same type of radiation as from the portals he made the children just like him, you and Duo." He explained. Heero shrugged,

"And that's bad?" he asked. Milliardo nodded,

"It goes against the will of the divine Heero. And it became the mission of the Sanc Kingdom and The Preventers to make sure that he didn't convince other women to have children like yours." He explained, as if to a child. Heero gritted his teeth,

"Let me guess… you outlawed the experiments and hunted down Athrun and my child? Reliena and Hilde too?" he asked sarcastically. Milliardo held Wufei back again,

"Yes, you got it in one." He sighed, "We captured Reliena and Hilde and placed them under secret house arrest. As far as the world was concerned it was Reliena's will that her children be found and killed. The children escaped with Zala."

Heero raised an eyebrow,

"Children? Reliena had more than one?" he asked, now getting quite mixed feelings about learning he was a daddy. Milliardo nodded,

"You're the father of triplets Heero. Duo's the father of twins. You have two girls and a boy. He has one of each." He explained. He frowned again, "And they escaped with the rebuilt, original, five Gundams. To wage war against the Sanc Kingdom and The Preventers."

Heero nodded,

"From what I know of the situation you gave them little choice." He looked at the three men in front of him, "What happened to you three? You once fought for the freedom of everyone but now you're the oppressors!"

Trowa shook his head,

"We're doing what is morally right Heero." He tried to tell his friend. Heero glared back,

"I bet Quatre doesn't see it that way." He countered. Trowa twitched and grabbed hold of Heero by the shoulders roughly,

"You don't get to speak about Quatre! You knew nothing about him!" he screamed at the unflinching Heero. Heero shook his head,

"He didn't see it that way did he?" he watched as Trowa took his head from his shoulders to hide his tears, "You killed him. Didn't you?"

Trowa shook his head and took a deep breath,

"We executed him. He was found to be helping Zala so he was publicly executed." He closed his eyes, "I was the one to execute him."

Heero spat at Trowa,

"And now you'll do the same to me."

"Yes. We will kill you, Duo and the girl."

Wufei laughed,

"But I'll have my fun with the girl first befo-"

Wufei fell to the floor, clutching his privates as Trowa and Milliardo looked at Heero, then at his foot and then to the knife that was now sticking out of Wufei. Heero glared at his old friend,

"That 'girl' has twice the spirit you ever had Wufei!" he shouted as two Preventer guards came from behind and began to drag the chair from the room. Heero struggled madly, "I'll kill you! I'll kill you all! I'm not going to die! I have a new mission Milliardo! I will bring you down!"H


End file.
